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Science

Journal Mensa Babe's Journal: So close... 41

Journal by Mensa Babe
I have just taken an Autism-Spectrum Quotient test, and fortunately I got only 31 points, while 32 or higher is typical for people diagnosed with autism or some related disorders. I am really glad I haven't scored 32, it was so close... I wonder how many points in this test have other people on Slashdot scored, especially those with IQ higher than 150. I am trying to find some correlation between IQ and AQ. I would be really glad if anyone could provide her AQ score together with a little background information. Thank you very much indeed.
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So close... More

So close...

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  • wow (Score:2)

    by rkz ( 667993 )
    I tried that and only got 10! I don't know if thats good or bad!
  • I'm a good bit above your threshold. I scored an 18 and I must admit to being both relieved and disappointed. As far as background goes, I'm pretty much your average(?) coder as far as personality goes.

    I have a nice network of friends and colleagues, a decent family and a wonderful SO (wife).

    I hope that helps with your study.
  • ...and, therefore, you may be in the remaining 20% and still might be autistic.

    Anyway, I believe that Baron-Cohen's test is more of a measure of social ineptness which is one consequence of autism. It just so happens that it also correlates with geekiness so I would guess that the average /. reader will score highly on the test despite not being autistic in the slightest.
  • sooo relieved :)

    • sooo relieved :)

      I surely know what you mean, it's a great feeling when you find out that you are in fact not autistic at all, now isn't it?

    • Yes, you should be relieved. Because having a label for your neurological problems would be much more debilitating than actually having the neurological problems, right? I remember that time that I kept falling down flights of stairs and I was worried it was an inner ear problem then my doctor told me that it wasn't -- all of a sudden every fall hurt like only half as much.

      On the other hand, if only we could figure out what's wrong with you, maybe we'd be able to fix it.
      • Yes, fix.
        We want everyone to fall within what is now half a standard deviation of the mean (I'm aware that sigma would change). Why must we have ethnic diversity and not neurological diversity? I was diagnosed with Asperger's four years ago. I have an IQ of about 160. The categorization was what annoyed me more than anything else. The first step in accepting diversity is not to categorize every damn thing. To say that I have a neurological disorder is the first step to being able to silence me. Surely nothi

        • Someone diagnosed you with Asperger's; how does a person diagnose another person with something? They use a criteria that (hopefully) they got out of a diagnostic manual, I'm going to assume the DSM-IV. Start the countdown:

          1. DSM stands for "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders", so if it's not a disorder, it wouldn't be in there. Don't you think it's fair that I use "problem" synonymously with "disorder"?
          2. Out of the 6 criteria for diagnosing Asperger's [autism-biomed.org], two of them require an "impairment".
      • Well, my comment was more of a joke than anything. I would have described myself as somewhat socially awkward or rather shy; I never would have thought I've got some sort of a disorder. I'm not going to pursue the matter further for fear that I do develop neurological problems.

  • I only got a 5 on the test.. and I'm pretty sure i'm a geek :-), so I say: don't trust that test..

    • I only got a 5 on the test.. and I'm pretty sure i'm a geek :-), so I say: don't trust that test..

      But I want to trust it, because it says I'm not autistic at all.

      • trust me instead:

        You are not autistic!

        I would think the fact that someone is capable of asking themselves the question "am I autistic?" and worry about the answer automatically makes them not autistic..

        Or is that wishful thinking?

        • trust me instead: You are not autistic!

          Are you sure?

          I would think the fact that someone is capable of asking themselves the question "am I autistic?" and worry about the answer automatically makes them not autistic.. ou are not autistic!

          But what about Richard Stallman? He's a genius in my opinion and still he considers himself autistic.

          Or is that wishful thinking?

          I surely hope it isn't.

          • Baron-Cohen (the author of the test) is part of a movement in cognitive science/psychology that characterizes autism (and related diseases like Asperger syndrome) in terms of deficiencies in the capacity to model minds (they use the term theory of mind module to describe the cognitive (functional) structure used to think about what people are thinking). So the grandparent poster is correct: if you can easily do all the second-order representation of your own thoughts to worry about having autism, then you

            • "I actually find it really offensive when "geeks" or whatever try to write off their social ineptness to "mild autism" or "Asperger syndrome" or whatever. There's a huge difference between a personality trait that mirrors a symptom of a disease, and that disease itself."

              And what of those of us who have been diagnosed with it?
              I never attached the label to myself. That was done by a psychiatrist. Now, do I think this is moronic? Yes. I am not disabled, and I do not need a crutch to use to claim that I am a

  • Agree: 4,5,6,7,12,39: 1 point
    Disagree: 29: 1 point
    Score: 7

    guess i'm not autistic

    • guess i'm not autistic

      I find it somehow surprising, since we've had a lot of problems with our communication, while I would find it at the very least hard to believe, that the fault might be in fact mine. Very strange indeed.

  • My last IQ test said I was +150. I scored a 17.

    It's rather a relief on one front - it's not like I need ANOTHER thing wrong with me.

    On the other hand, no one should use this test as a substitute for test and evaluation by a professionally trained head-shrinker.

  • 28

    i am a former mensa member. You know the general idea of where that puts my IQ. I don't have the exact number, I took the Mensa administered test.

    • 28

      i am a former mensa member. You know the general idea of where that puts my IQ. I don't have the exact number, I took the Mensa administered test.

      It seems that those of us with superior intellects are also in some way inter-personal-communication-skills-wise impared. Isn't that ironic? Don't you think?

      • yeah, its kinda wacky -- but thats why us smart folk invented the internet (the great "equalizer")
      • I take it statistics is not on the Mensa Test? You may be smart, but you're no Marilyn vos Savant: I'd guess she knows a thing or two about confidence intervals.

        • I take it statistics is not on the Mensa Test?

          It is truely amazing how little people know about Mensa tests, especially those very people who particularly enjoy insulting Mensa members, or those who claim to have passed these tests but have chosen to refuse the Mensa membership... I find it extremely funny and amusing indeed. I am sure everyone will agree with me about that.

          • Perhaps instead of running around bragging about your membership you should try and educate some of us about Mensa? Answering my question instead of being passive-aggressive would have been a nice start. And please don't make assumptions about what other people think, your AQ is far too high for you to have any idea.
            • She can't educate you about mensa because she has probably never been to a meeting. Much like myself. The difference is, however, that she maintains her membership for the sake of bragging-rights, while I killed mine because its a waste of money.

              The only people more annoying than active mensa members are the inactive ones that like to tell everyone how smart they are.
      • It seems that those of us with superior intellects are also in some way inter-personal-communication-skills-wise impared. Isn't that ironic? Don't you think?

        Well, you at the very least seem "sentence-construction-wise impaired". Try this

        It seems that those of us with superior intellects also have some sort of interpersonal-communication skills impairment.
        Easier on the eyes, eh?

  • FWIW (Score:2)

    by lewp ( 95638 )
    I got a 27. My IQ is >150.
  • I scored 39, I have an IQ of 148.
    I also believe I suffer from ADD/ADHD.
  • Actually, a test like this can be skewed by natural compensation throughout adulthood, which is why adults are often diagnosed with "residual" AS. In some of the questions, there were answers I would have given earlier in life, but with a couple more decades immersed in the social soup, I answer differently now. Most of these are in the social skills area as opposed to personal preferences.

    (Disclaimer: My knowledge of AS comes from my son's AS diagnosis nine months ago, so for the most part, I'm still ta
  • According to the various tests I've tried over the years, my IQ is in the 140-160 range. Don't know if there's a correlation, but for sure persons with autism seem much better at concentrating on a given task (not any task, mind you - only one that somehow grabs the attention).
  • IQ measured at 187 at Boston University Medical Center. AQ tested as 11.

    -T

  • I scored 7 on this test with an IQ that is 150+. What I would like to know is what I would have scored when I was 15 or 16. My social aptitude and general approach to life has changed dramatically in the last 10 years and I wonder if that would have been reflected in a test like this.

  • me (Score:2)

    by shayborg ( 650364 )
    Agree: 4,5,12,41: 1 point
    Disagree: 8,14,17,29,30,32,50: 1 point
    Score: 11

    IQ's around 175 last time I had it tested but this was a while back.

    -- shayborg

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